Ex-Northampton teacher sentenced to 10 years in child sex case

Jun. 18, 2013

Aaron Siegrist

Written by

Constance Morrison

Staff Writer

EASTVILLE — Former Northampton County Public Schools teacher Aaron Daniel Siegrist will spend the next decade in the state penitentiary for aggravated sexual battery against a 5-year-old girl.

The 20-year sentence, with 10 years suspended, was well above the court's sentencing guidelines for what Commonwealth's Attorney Bruce Jones termed “a planned, systematic, depraved assault” that was “at the expense of a defenseless little girl.”

Siegrist, 37, who taught fourth grade at Occohannock Elementary School near Exmore, himself described the crime as going “against basic human decency.”

According to Jones, the incident that prompted the charges occurred in September 2012 when the victim was invited to overnight with the Siegrist family. The victim and Siegrist's daughter, who is the same age as the victim, were sleeping in the Siegrist's living room in their underpants.

After the rest of the family was asleep, said Jones, Siegrist consumed a large amount of vodka and violated the victim as she pretended to sleep on the living room floor.

In making his case to exceed sentencing guidelines, Jones said the victim testified in a forensic interview she was fondled “all over her body.”

Jones said sentencing guidelines between one and five years did not square with the gravity of the offenses, and did not adequately protect the public.

“It is perfectly obvious that her life has been forever degraded by the defendant,” he said.

Ward said Siegrist was at low risk of re-offending under one evaluation method, but at maximum risk level under another. Ward agreed with another doctor's recommendation that Siegrist should have no unsupervised contact with children, especially at home.

Ward also said he interviewed Siegrist's two young daughters and found no overt signs of sexual abuse.

Siegrist's wife of seven years, Jennifer Siegrist,characterized her husband as a “wonderful father” who takes his daughters berry picking, on hikes, and to the beach.

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“They think he is the best daddy in the world,” she said. “Anyone who knows him is in shock.”

Under questioning from Jones, she said she trusts Siegrist with their daughters, and plans to continue the marriage.

He said he wanted the victim to know that none of what happened was her fault, and he “hoped she would forget about everything.”

He told the victim's parents, “I'm sorry, and I don't think I'll ever not be sorry.”

Siegrist said his own family has supported him through calls, visits, mail, and attending court. “They tell me they still believe in me,” he said.

He asked the court “to show as much mercy as you can give.”

Before passing sentence, Judge W. Revell Lewis III said the victim impact statement contained an account of the victim being asked to give thanks for Thanksgiving dinner. She said, in part, “God bless Mr. Aaron and his sick brain,” and she hoped he would recover and return home.

“It's helpful to realize we can learn something from children,” Lewis said.

But in considering the evidence, and what happened to the victim, Lewis said a breach of trust of this magnitude robs the victims of innocence. Besides punishing Siegrist, Lewis said it is important to "deter other who may be inclined to commit similar offenses."

In addition to his sentence, Siegrist will be under the suspended sentence for the rest of his life. He will be on indefinite probation after release, have to register as a sex offender, and under state law, will be prohibited from going onto school property or loitering near schools or day care centers.